Smile
by Lucy Kay
Summary: Relates the events of Perry's request to help Mira, a friend in need. This pair practically defines this genre. -Is anyone else hurt that Mira isn't in the character list?- Picture is not mine. Safe for anyone! :D


Hello, there! My name's Lucy. Welcome to my one-shot. n_n

I got around to thinking about all the things I'm supposed to do before I go back to school on Tuesday and decided I had an impossible amount of things I could be doing right now. I could even be working on the stories I have on this site. Well… thinking about due dates and deadlines and huge projects made me nauseas, so I decided to write this instead. xD

Enjoy! 3

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><p>He just wanted to see her smile again. Sure, Perry loved her in his own little way, but it was certainly not romantic. It was… special. Something he had only found between the two of them.<p>

Mira was the most devout of anyone else on Castanet. At first, Perry wondered if it was because she didn't have anything better to do with her spare time. Even so, it wouldn't have mattered anymore. She was there and that was all that mattered.

Every early morning, Perry would wake up and get ready for the day as usual. He would thank the Harvest Goddess and the Harvest God for watching over their land and he would take up his manuscripts and open the door to the church hall.

And there she would be. It was a mystery to him at first how she had managed to enter the building before he unlocked the door, but he soon grew accustomed to it and no longer questioned it. Her shop opened early and closed late, so he understood her motives. But the execution? Quite the mystery. Once he had presented her with a key, but she refused it. Confused, she had answered that 'she did not need it'. What a strange woman.

Since her husband died, Mira had lost her spunk. Her zest. Her love. Truly though, Perry felt selfish. Of course he was sad for her, sympathizing with her loneliness, but the only reason she was in the same room with him every day was because of her loss. He was not happy about it, but he could not help but enjoy the company that he never had before Mira.

Mira would stand in the back corner, silently bowing her head in prayer. Perry never asked what she prayed about. He never offered to help her. He barely introduced himself. But every day, Mira would look up after a little while, see Perry at the front behind the pulpit, smile at him, and take her leave. Those few short seconds of smiling Perry saw every day were so special, so treasured. No one else ever got to see Mira smile. She barely had a reason to smile. And yet she offered him the courtesy every day.

Perry refused to keep this secret to himself. Precious and rare, Mira's smile should be shared. How Perry wished he knew how he could make her happy again…!

Today was just like any other day at the church. When he peered out the small crack in the back door, he could see Mira in the corner, silently hanging her head in reverence. He smiled to himself, about to step out, when Mira did something quite different. She looked up.

_Was she finished already?_ He thought to himself, mildly disappointed and thinking himself late.

Mira stared up at the stained glass windows and frowned. The heavenly protectors of the island glowed down upon her in hundreds of shimmering colors, but they did not satisfy her. Mira's eyes searched the ceiling for a moment, almost desperately, before she let a few tears slip down her face. She wiped her eyes quickly and left the church without looking back.

Perry felt terrible. It was time to take action! But… what could he do? He certainly didn't want to bother her with small talk or trivial sympathies. And he wasn't good with women anyways… He would have to ask someone for help.

"Pastor? Pastor Perry? Are you here?" Angela stepped into the church, looking around. She seemed to shrug to her own shoulder which Perry found very odd, but… well, that wasn't something to dwell on.

_Well, talk about a guardian angel!_ "So sorry! I'm here!" Perry scrambled out, dropping half of his papers and books in the process. Angela came running up the aisle to help pick up the things he clumsily dropped.

"Is that the last one?" She asked, handing him a page.

"I – I think so." Perry nodded, standing back up. "Thank you, Angela. Now… um, what was it you wanted? Again?"

Angela scrutinized him and summed up his problem in one look. "Do you have something on your mind, Perry?"

Honestly, it wasn't a question he was used to hearing. Well, he had heard it: from his own mouth. He had never been on the receiving end. The result became a spiel of his thoughts to the poor farmer.

"—and I really want to do something nice for her, but I don't know what I can do… Will you help me, Angela?" He finished with a plea.

Angela smiled wide. "Of course! I'd love to help. It's very nice of you, Perry. In fact, I think I have just the thing you're looking for. I was on my way through town handing out flowers – do you think you might want to give one to Mira when you see her again?"

Perry clapped his hands together in excitement at the unveiling of the Blue Mist Flower. "That's perfect! Oh, thank you so much, Angela! I really couldn't thank you enough!"

Angela let out a clear laugh. "I'm glad it's made you so happy."

"I – I know it's not much, but would you like to take this? As a token of my gratitude?" Perry frantically dug through his papers and found an old recipe card for Vegetable Soup. It wasn't much, but he figured it was something the girl could make use of.

"Oh, yeah! Wow, that's great, Perry. Thanks!" Angela stuck the card in her rucksack carefully. She walked back down the aisle towards the door, turning back to wave. "Take care, Perry! I know you'll be able to make Mira smile."

"I… I think so, too."

She opened the door to leave and Perry's face blanched. "Oh, excuse me, Mira."

"Good morning, Angela." The woman smiled.

Perry anxiously attempted to hide the flower, tossing it into a pew nearby.

Angela disappeared down the steps and Mira entered the church. She noticed Perry staring at her, so she pointed to the back pew to explain. "I left my shawl this morning…"

"Oh. I'm… sorry." Perry said lamely.

Mira nodded and briskly walked up the pew and stooped to pick up the shawl in question. Perry stood stupidly for awhile before remembering the flower. Picking it up, he was glad to see that Mira was lingering, staring down at the shawl in her hands.

Perry hurried her way and stopped at the end of the pew. Mira noticed him there and smiled. "Pastor?"

"I… um…" He stuttered, at a loss for what to say. He presented the flower and Mira walked up to him. "I'm sorry, Mira. I—"

"For what?" She asked, seemingly worried.

Perry sighed. "Never mind. I just thought this flower might… cheer you up? Just a little…?"

Mira touched her heart at the thought. She carefully picked up the flower by the stem, staring into the petals. "Thank you… Perry. That was very kind of you to do. I appreciate it."

Perry smiled. "I know it's not much—"

"No… You're wrong. Blue was his favorite…" Mira remembered, fondling the leaves. "Thank you. It means more than you could have known."

Mira wrapped an arm around Perry's shoulder, pulling him into a hug. Perry gave her a pat on the back, glad to see her so touched by the gesture. She pulled the shawl over her shoulders, smiled at Perry one more time, and left the church.

Perry saw her out and shut the door behind her. Walking slowly back to the front, Perry looked up towards the stained glass where the sun was shining down, creating dust clouds in the air. They seemed to be smiling, too…


End file.
